Blossoming
by Cloudshaper
Summary: What if Washu didn't interrupt the conversation between Tenchi and Ryoko in the tree that one afternoon? TenchixRyoko One-shot


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A/N: Welcome to yet another TxR one-shot! I wrote this very late (12:47 a.m., to be exact) and just thought I'd put it up. Hopefully I can get a full story out one of these days. In my opinion, this is somewhat similar to the previous one I wrote, "Imagine", but I just felt like having a little fun, so here it is! Enjoy!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Tenchi Muyo! _

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**Blossoming **

_To the world you are one person, but to one person you are the world.- Anonymous_

The Okayama sky was bloodshot, several purple clouds lingering overhead. The air was still, and the atmosphere quiet. The chaos had ended, and the battle was over. All was calm.

"So much has happened, huh?"

"Yeah…"

The space pirate and earthling boy sat on a heavy branch, the tree sitting on the outskirts of the forest. Their view overlooked the lake, the darkened mountains, and the sunset. There was a momentary silence among them.

"You've been amazing, Tenchi." Ryoko commented softly. Her legs were pulled up against her chest, her black skirt riding up.

Another silence filled the space between them.

"You think this was the best solution?" he responded with a question, not catching her compliment.

"I think it was brilliant!" she said honestly. She gazed out into the sunset, her eyes sparkling with content.

"I still wonder…" Tenchi drifted off. He wondered how she had managed to stay upright without falling—but she was Ryoko; there were many things about her he couldn't explain.

"Look, Yugi couldn't have stayed in this world the way she is now, right?" Ryoko responded keenly.

"Maybe Washu could've figured something out, you know…something scientific?" Tenchi seemed very unsure of himself. There was a layer of guilt coating his voice, but Ryoko could not quite pinpoint the source. Tenchi leaned forward, resting his hands in his lap.

"This was Yugi's decision—she chose to stay asleep until she grows up into a better person…." Ryoko finished reasonably. She stole a loving glance at him, as she usually did when he wasn't looking.

"Hey Tenchi…" Ryoko began delicately.

"Huh?" Tenchi felt his stomach lurch at her sudden change of tone. He turned to look at her.

"Sakuya was a shadow of Yugi, right?" Ryoko asked shyly, turning her head to avoid his gaze.

Tenchi wasn't sure he liked where this was going. He hated the confrontation the girls threw at him.

"So…doesn't that mean Yugi will turn into Sakuya when she grows up?" Ryoko finished, blinking innocently.

Tenchi felt his cheeks heat up. "I don't know!" he responded hurriedly.

"But what if she does?" Ryoko pressed on, almost childlike. "What are you going to do, Tenchi?" She turned back to face him, staring deep into his chocolate brown eyes.

Tenchi knew that the subject was an extremely fragile one, and he wanted to avoid saying something offend the pirate.

But something was different about Ryoko; there was no hostility. For the first time, Tenchi saw maturity and tolerance in Ryoko's amber eyes. Several months ago, she would probably have been trying to knock some sense into the seventeen year old boy sitting beside her, pawing at him and attempting to seduce him.

"I never thought about it…" he said almost darkly, a bad feeling taking him over. He turned his head. Ryoko let out a laugh at his sudden change in attitude.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not jealous of her!" she cackled and gripped the branch to keep from falling off.

"So you had a fling—I'm a grown up woman! I can handle it!" she continued to boast. Ryoko let her long legs dangle from the branch. "After all, these things happen. It's natural!" She threw Tenchi an understanding smile.

Tenchi felt his muscles relax. "I'm glad you have a good attitude about it," he said, quite relieved. He turned to face back out towards the cherry sky stretched before him.

Suddenly, a form blocked his view of the peaceful countryside. Ryoko appeared in front of him, inches from his face, floating in midair. Her eyes were wide and she gazed into his. Tenchi's body tensed once more and he simply froze. For a moment, there was silence.

"I was totally lying. I can't bear to think about it," Ryoko admitted, an injured sadness in her eyes. Tenchi gulped.

"I need you to kiss me now," she ordered him forlornly.

Tenchi was silent for a moment. He was too busy examining Ryoko's features: the unusual shaping of her ears, her wild cyan hair, her beautiful bone structure, her soft eyelids, her thin lips pulled back into a somewhat sad smile, her expressive eyes that showed so much depth and history—he could almost see her brokenness within them.

Tenchi continued to gaze at her.

"You don't think I'm good enough?" Ryoko said, even softer still. Tenchi's eyes were still wide, looking at her. Her soft smile remained on her face, and Tenchi was having a hard time breaking away.

Ryoko had always been there for him—for a couple years now. Why was he just _now _realizing that? Tenchi felt an abrupt rush of heat in his cheeks. He had the sudden urge to reach out and touch her face—a mental command his body obliged to.

He lifted his hand slowly, his eyes not leaving her face. Ryoko gazed back at him, but could see his hand rising from the corner of her eye. Her expression dropped ever so slowly. Tenchi's hand reached her left cheek, and she placed a hand upon his, keeping his hand there on her face as if she was afraid it would disappear. She closed her eyes and tilted her head, savoring the moment.

"Ryoko…" Tenchi whispered.

It was at this moment that everything shifted. Tenchi was confused, unsure about what he truly wanted anymore. Suddenly, Sakuya felt like a distant memory, or a figure out of a dream the previous night. He could hardly remember her face anymore.

Ryoko's jaw was dropped very slightly, almost in shock that Tenchi had responded. He pulled her a bit closer and let his forehead rest against hers. His eyes looked down; he noticed her chest was rising and falling very quickly, and he knew he was keeping her in such suspense it was probably killing her. Her eyes in turn were staring down as well, but widened in anticipation.

"I do want to kiss you Ryoko…" he admitted quietly. Ryoko closed her eyes and held her breath, hoping she wasn't dreaming.

The only noise that filled the air was the distant sound of birds cawing from afar.

The two remained that way, Ryoko floating near the branch, her forehead pressed against Tenchi's.

"Then why don't you?" she asked. Was her voice breaking?

"I think I'm afraid to." Tenchi acknowledged quietly. Ryoko pulled away slightly and stared at him, her tawny eyes boring into his.

"Please Tenchi…" Ryoko pleaded quietly, a hint of desperation in her voice. Tenchi realized how much she truly needed this.

He reached out and took her hands, slowly pulling her towards him. He spread his legs slightly, taking her slender body between them, and placed a soft, tender kiss on her lips. Ryoko gave a bit of a whimper, but she snaked her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. She was quite surprised at the passion, the fervor Tenchi was giving.

After what felt like an eternity, she reluctantly pulled away. Her eyes were fixated on his lips, trying to take it all in.

He let his index finger caress her cheek delicately. "Mmm…my Ryoko." He said warmly, smiling graciously at her.

Ryoko's eyes gleamed once again, more now than ever. That was what she needed to hear.

Tenchi felt a sudden knot untie in his stomach; he had chosen. There would be no more wars, no more heated debates or speculation. He had picked. And that was that.

Ryoko's smile lingered on her face as she held onto Tenchi and materialized onto the ground. Once safely on the soil, Tenchi laced his fingers through hers, their gazes never drifting from one another's face. He leaned in and kissed her once more.

"We should head back," he said, nodding to the sun dipping behind the mountains. Ryoko glimpsed over at the sunset, afraid her moment had been ruined. Her thoughts were reassured as she felt Tenchi's fingers lock around hers. She held it tightly, biting her lip.

"Let's go home." He stated simply, his loving smile still plastered on his face.

The last bits of sunlight shone brightly on his face, causing something inside of Ryoko to rile up and sing. The boy was finally hers, and she was willing to spend all eternity with him if he asked that of her.

Together, hand in hand, they returned to the Masaki house, ready for a new adventure to unfold…

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A/N: I'm not gonna lie, I got distracted and didn't know how to end it. Epic fail, on my part. Anyways, hope you enjoyed it!


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